It happened some years ago but I can recall the evening as if it had transpired just last week. I was in an audience listening to a motivational guru. The speaker whipped out his wallet and pulled out a 500-rupee note. Holding it up, he asked, ‘Who wants this 500-rupee note?’
Many hands went up. Including mine. A slow chorus began to build as people shouted, ‘Me!’ ‘Me!’ I began to wonder who the lucky one would be to whom the speaker would choose to give away the money. I also secretly wondered—and I am sure others did too—why would he simply give away 500 rupees?
Even as the shouts of ‘I want it’ grew louder, I noticed a young woman running down the aisle. She ran on to the stage, went up to the speaker and grabbed the note in his hand. ‘Well done, young lady,’ said the speaker into the microphone. ‘Most of us just wait for good things to happen. That’s of no use. You’ve got to make things happen.’ The speaker’s words have stayed with me ever since.
Our lives are like that. We all see opportunities around us. We all want the good things. But the problem is we don’t take action. We all want the 500-rupee notes on offer. But we don’t make the move. We look at them longingly and wonder who the lucky one will be—instead of making our own luck. To be fair, some of us do think of running on to the stage and grabbing the 500-rupee note. But we quickly hold ourselves back, because we worry about what people might think.
Has it ever happened that you see a successful new product or a flourishing new business and remind yourself of how you had thought of that very same idea many years ago? Well, that’s not worth much. You may have had the idea first, but someone else did something about it, so he’ll reap the rewards. The next time you have an idea, remember that simply thinking about doing something is of no use. Go and do something about it. The next time you see an opportunity, think of the lady and the 500-rupee note. Don’t worry about what other people might think. Take action.
*
Several years later, it was another day, another time and another motivational guru. As I watched him pull out a 500-rupee note and hold it up for all to see, I thought I knew what he was going to do next. But he just asked a simple question. ‘How much is this worth?’
‘Five hundred rupees!’ the crowd yelled in unison. ‘Right,’ said the speaker. He then crumpled the note into a ball and asked, ‘How much is it worth now?’
‘Five hundred rupees!’ screamed the audience.
Next, he threw the note on the ground and stamped all over it. Then he picked it up and asked one more time, ‘And how much is it worth now?’
‘Five hundred rupees!’ was the response.
‘I want you to remember this,’ said the speaker. ‘Just because someone crumples it or stamps on it, the value of the note does not diminish. We should all be like the 500-rupee note. In our lives, there will be times when we feel crushed, stamped on, beaten. But never let your selfworth diminish. Remember you are still the terrific person you were. Just because someone chooses to crush you—that doesn’t change your worth one bit! Don’t allow your self-worth to diminish because someone says something nasty or plays a dirty trick on you.’
*
Opportunities abound but you need to take action to realize those opportunities. Don’t let the words and actions of other people diminish your self-worth. Remember that, and maybe you will get all the happiness and all the 500-rupee notes that you always wanted!
Most of us just wait for good things to happen. That’s of no use. You’ve got to make things happen.
And there will be times when we feel crushed, stamped on, beaten. But never let that diminish your self-worth. Remember you are still the terrific person you were. Just because someone chooses to crush you—that doesn’t change your worth one bit!